However, he also introduced tight control. One of his legacies was a clampdown on the press - tight restrictions that remain in place today - while measures such as corporal punishment have been criticised as repressive.
Dissent - and political opponents - were ruthlessly quashed. Today, PAP remains firmly in control. There are currently six opposition lawmakers in parliament.
He was widely admired by world leaders, but criticised what he saw as the overly liberal approach of the US and the West, saying it had "come at the expense of orderly society".